Insect lover

Our new friend Wooly

 

Look at that sad face! 

 

 

Gus was devastated when he found out that he couldn't keep his new wooly friend forever inside a plastic jar.....so this morning, we built "Wooly" a new home, complete with air holes, lots of leafy greens and a clear viewing window!

 

Deluxe caterpillar accommodations

 

 He has since found Wooly a companion and we're hoping they enjoy their new digs enough to set up shop and grace us with their moth presence in a few weeks!

A little afternoon project

Today I've taken some work on our farmhouse "on the road."  I can't be there working as much as I'd like, so I brought a project back to Mom & Dad's: the antique register covers we're going to be putting in after the HVAC man is done. 

So far I've soaked them in water & washing soda for a few days, scrubbed with a wire brush twice, rinsed with vinegar and sanded with sand paper.  All that's left is to repaint.  I don't have a "before" picture for you, but I can tell you that one of them was painted white over peach....and another was white over turquoise.  I'm curious what the color schemes were like when these things were in use!

We passed our electrical inspection the other day and now are almost ready for the framing one.  Then we'll be starting work on insulation and drywall.  Getting exciting, folks:)

Candy Land

After playing Candy Land, Gus said, "If Candy Land were real, I would eat the whole town!"

Strawberry Cream Cakes

Spending time working at our farmhouse has been hard, but also good for our kids.  They get bored and hungry and extremely dirty. But, on the other hand, they are becoming masters of entertaining themselves. 

 

I spent a couple mornings there this week and thought I'd give you a snap shot of their creativity:

 

~One morning they spent 2+ hours "farming" the tent caterpillars that have set up shop in one of our trees.  They would capture them, build them homes, drive them around the yard on their kids size ATV, and then put them back where they found them.

 

~They have established a place down in the crawlspace called "Dusty Island."  Sometimes it's an archaeological dig, sometimes it's a restaurant, but it's always full of dirt & dust to play with!

 

~Yesterday, after quite a while playing quietly by herself, Kip presented me with my very own strawberry cream sawdust cake for my "birthday."  It was made of a 2 X 2 square of scrap wood, covered with sawdust, and it seriously did look like a little cake with icing!

 

Some days, I feel like we're just playing out a modern version of Little House On the Prairie, and it's such a joy to see our kids adapt and thrive in this new environment.

 

 

 

Picnic in the Park, with Cherries

 

 

Had a fun outing for a lunch picnic the other day. 

 And, yes, Kip is almost always in a Princess dress these days:)

Windows!

So, this is the back of our farmhouse before we started work.  Notice the two 1st floor windows.  They were the same as all the other windows in the house, except for the fact that they were installed horizontally instead of vertically!

 

This is yesterday....

 

Out with the old!

 

And in with the new!!

 

 

The new windows are wonderful for a shorty like me-I can see out without feeling like I have to be on my tiptoes!! 

 

Scott has been doing an amazing job knocking things out lately, so we are very close to being finished with both the electrical & HVAC rough-ins.  Woo-hoo:)

 

Week Away

After my school let out for the summer in early May, we took a week off for a family vacation.  Can you guess where we went?

 

 

 

 

 

Bingo! Williamsburg, VA

 

The kids were pretty good sports about riding around while I drooled over colonial style gardens for one whole morning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we chanced upon a guy, hauling an old fashioned sandbox on a cart,

 

 

who led us straight to the brickyard, where Gus got to do some heavy lifting.

 

 

 

 

 And now there will forevermore be a brick in some new/old colonial building with my son's name inscribed:)

 

 

Did you know that back then they could only make two bricks at a time?  It's mind boggling to me the amount of time and effort that went into EVERYTHING you made back then.

 

 

 

Playing in the sand pit:)

 

We also visited Smithfield, VA (the Ham Capital of the World, I kid you not!), spent many afternoons at the pool, had several movie nights, introduced the kids to the Candyland board game & ate lots of special vacation treats.

 

It wasn't the most relaxing week (for us parents), but it was so good to get away from the normal routines of life for a bit.

 

 

Before & After

 

White aluminum siding & shutters

 

Original gray wood siding we found underneath

 

 

Up next: a new roof!

Dad...

Kip:

"Dad...you are handsome!"

...

"What does 'handsome' mean?"

Ooh La La

She dressed herself and did her own hair....

One Year

So we've been here now for one year.  365 days. Wow. To be totally honest, I'm glad we've all survived.  It doesn't feel quite like thriving yet, but I suppose we're on our way.

 

The verse I picked out to pray for our family this year has been a much needed one:

"May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Romans 15:5-6

 Right now we are perfecting the art of WAITING.   And asking daily for endurance and encouragement in that endeavor.

 

We continue to wait on our house project.  Here's some updated photos of what things look like these days:

 

 

 

 

 

 The buried path I spent a couple days digging out

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So we're excited to have some new pipes, electrical wires, grass, ductwork and a giant hole under the front beam where they are building a new support wall. 

 

And, of course, these cuties are always along for the ride, helping in anyway possible....and usually getting themselves covered with dirt and/or mud in the process:)